CatH Post 90
In CatH Post 90 Clear has just witnessed The Hopeful destroy an entire Jupiterian ship in NeS2 1982. Unable to deny the existence of the superweapon aboard The Hopeful she vows to go over there and find out what's happening. She instantly suspects mind-control, given her past experience with Aellisin Koure - though Ciel guarantees that it is not the return of Koure they are seeing. Clear asks Green and Pully to rescue Alexis Thrain from Orbital One while she, Ciel and the ST Clan board The Hopeful. The ship fires once again, this time its superweapon aimed at Spaceball One of the Galactic Empire of the Milky Way, which is being commanded by President Polk. The super-star destroyer survives when another star-destroyer sacrifices itself to spare the command ship. When there do'Ziikin Dhaeriend reveals that Thrain had already made contact and believed that someone aboard The Hopeful was being mind-controlled by a woman aboard Orbital One. Dhae and Rui-Rho both want to help in the search for the missing Lumo, who Clear believes is the one being mind-controlled after finding Kara Pashna. However when the ship comes under fire ST Clan Leader manages to persuade Clear to hold off on the hunt for Lumo with the possibility that the superweapon could be used to defend The Hopeful for now. Instead of continuing the assault against The Hopeful, the enemy intends to board them. Though Clear had been expecting the Imperials or the Jupiterians, instead it is revealed that The Excellence has arrived, under the command of Sue'san Dienhand. Post Attack of The Hopeless Clear: "Mabey, I need to know if Admiral Ltexi is still alive!!!" Clear's mind wants to crack wide. She wants to succumb to despair. That would be easier than holding it together and seeing this through. Ever since Kiron Nightstrider showed her his dream of ''The Hopeful destroying the planet Algernon with its superweapon, Clear has been in complete denial that such a weapon could possibly exist. She told herself it couldn't be. Even when Aellisin Koure was in the weapon control room and activated the superweapon to obliterate Tangris, Clear refused to believe that was really what it was. Without the actual shot, without the definitive evidence, she could cling to the idea that The Hopeful was nothing more than a gigantic bucket in space.'' There is no denying it now. The Hopeful is a devastating weapon of mass destruction. Mabey: "She is alive and still relaying messages within the Jupiterian fleet." A small tear wriggles free of her eye and she quickly wipes it away before anyone notices. She hates Ltexi in so many ways, but through all of their rivalry she admires and loves the stubborn *****. Pully: "Clear... I hate to tell you this but The Hopeful is charging up another shot." Clear: "Who the Hell is doing this!? You're here, I'm here. The only person over there is Lumo! Is it Koure? Has he found his way back here? He can only control women, not men, right?" Ciel: "It is definitely not Koure. He's out of action, I can assure you of that." Clear: "I remember..." Ciel shrugs. Ciel: "Can you still say I was wrong? This could have been Koure, couldn't it?" Pully: "It's firing again!" Through the viewscreen of ''The Unbroken, where Clear is standing with her team, she sees several white lasers ignite from various points upon the inner ring of the slightly-croissant-shaped Hopeful. The beams converge and generate a large sphere. The sphere expands as it charges.'' Clear: "We have to stop this!" Pully: "It's... it's targeting Spaceball One." President Polk deserved what is about to come, certainly, but not like this. ''The Hopeful ''shouldn't be a weapon, it's a bastion to the lost. It's a safe haven for the weary and broken. It is the unassuming and unpretentious realm of those that have fallen through the cracks in the universe. It is a home to Clear. It should never be an object of war. Clear: "I'm going aboard! I'll take The Lightstaff over and I'll find out who's mind-controlling my friends this time." Pully: "Alright. I'll get my gear--" Clear: "I'll take the ST Clan. You take The Unbroken and get Alexis off of Orbital One before The Hopeful blows that up too." There's a moment's hesitation in Pully, but she quickly recognises the determination in Clear and there's no time for an argument. Pully: "Aye, Sir." The ST Clan gets up and they head out of the door. Clear, before she leaves, glances back. Clear: "Ciel, if you're happy to help, could go to The Hopeful ahead of us?" Ciel is gone in an instant, surrounded by the sphere she uses as a transport mechanism. Green: "Clear... will you be okay?" Clear gives Green a sorrowful shrug. Clear: "No. Not really." Green's eyes widen. Green: "But--!" Clear: "Just look after Pully and Thrain for me, okay? Mother's hard-light will stay here so she can tell you what I'm doing whenever you ask her." Green looks at Mother, who is standing close by with a bemused look on her red-skinned face. Green: "Mother?" Mother: "How may I help you, Green?" Green: "What is Clear doing right now?" Clear: "Seriously, Green?" Clear rolls her eyes. Mother: "Clear is leaving you." Clear hears Green, even as she walks down the corridor towards the exit hatch; Green: "I thought so..." The ST Clan and Clear cram into The Lightstaff. There's no actual docking bay on a ship as small as ''The Unbroken corvette, but The Lightstaff has the unique feature of clinging to things with its odd legs. The ship's body, pressed against the exist hatch of the ship, can open a door to allow passage from one ship to the other. Clear gets into the cockpit along with ST Clan Leader.'' Clear: "Lucky I'm paying you those mega bucks, huh?" ST Clan Leader: "We're mercenaries, ambassador, but what's happening out there, right now, is about more than money." Clear: "Does that mean I get a discount?" ST Clan Leader: "Ouch." The Lightstaff detaches from ''The Unbroken and gently rolls away into space. Through the forward window she sees the corvette and then the incoming Alliance fleet in the distance. The screen displays tells her the various Alliance ships involved and she catches a glance at the name Ace Lander as one of the commanders there. She tries not to think about that right now. Let him, and the Alliance, do their jobs and she can do hers.'' ST Clan Leader: "Didn't expect him to be here!" Clear's heart almost lurches through her mouth and she glares at ST Clan Leader with wild, accusing eyes. ST Clan Leader: "Lieutenant Randy is supposed to be sticking to his ambassadorial role, not running about playing war hero." Clear: "Oh right. He's here too--?" She could almost melt with relief. Clear: "I guess he tried to follow the Jupiterian fleet when he heard they left the Cosmic Nullius too." ST Clan Leader: "Looks like your weapon is about to fire again, Clear." Clear turns the ship around and heads straight for ''The Hopeful. They're just in time to see the weapon released. A thin beam of light shoots out like a ruler at such a speed it's as though it had always been there and never travelled at all. Having detected the lock-on, however, the Empire tried to save its Super Star-Destroyer by sacrificing another Star Destroyer that sat in the beam's path. The shaft of energy pierced straight through the first Star Destroyer and still hit the second, albeit with significantly less strength. The sacrificial ship imploded and then exploded as the energy released. Spaceball One loses its fore, which is sheared off and vaporised, while the aft then starts to drift away like a dying whale.'' ST Clan Leader: "The most powerful Super-Star Destroyer, wiped out with a single blast..." He then looks at Clear. ST Clan Leader: "Are you sure you want to stop this? I mean, it's done nothing but destroy our enemies." Clear: "My house will not be some... space tank!" ST Clan Leader: "Space... tank. Creative." Clear: "I know how this is going to go. And it's going to go 'out of hand fast'. I can tell you that. Now everyone knows my ship has this weapon, they'll all want it. Soon as I get on there, I'm going to find out how to destroy everything about the weapon." ST Clan Leader: "Okay. You're the boss." There's a moment of silence between them as The Lightstaff races towards the Hangar Bay of The Hopeful, which yawns like a giant maw. ST Clan Leader: "You know, if you sold the weapon parts you could--" Clear: "I won't give a weapon like that to anyone." ST Clan Leader: "Okay, okay. You're right. Wise choice." Another moment passes. ST Clan Leader: "But the energy cells alone for that things must be worth--" Clear: "The passenger seat is actually an ejector seat, you know?" ST Clan Leader: "Sorry. I can't help it. Just looking at all the angles." Clear: "There's only one angle for me. The weapon is gone. Got that, Lieutenant Arseface?" ST Clan Leader: "Still going to call me that?" Clear: "Are you going to tell me your name?" ST Clan Leader: "Dave." Clear: "Your name is Dave? Seriously?" ST Clan Leader: "No it's not, but you can call me that if you'd like." Clear: "I want your real name." ST Clan Leader: "John." She looks at him. ST Clan Leader: "John Johnson. My middle name is Dave. John Dave Johnson. Actually my family name is a hyphen name. John Dave Johnson-Daveson." He looks at her. ST Clan Leader: "The third." Clear: "Arseface." In the Hangar Bay Clear's group gathers together, both those who were aboard The Hopeful and those she has brought with her from The Unbroken. Back on The Unbroken only Green and Pully remained. Dhaeriend zo'Diikin, the drow that had decided Clear was too much fun not to hang around with, comes stomping down the metal stairwell from the corridor and into the hangar. He's wearing a large pair of goggles over his eyes and looks to be wearing some kind of exo-suit that sparks every few minutes and will probably catch fire any minute. A small, hovering machine stalks after him through the air, kept aloft by four very obvious anti-gravity pads at its top and bottom. The machine has two googly-eyes fixed to its front. Clear instantly decides she isn't going to ask. do'Ziikin: "Welcome back, capitan! I'm ready to help!" Clear: "Where's Lumo?" do'Ziikin: "Not here." Clear: "Yes. I can see that much." do'Ziikin: "Mother has been trying to contact him for a while now but he's not responding. She says he's not dead, so he must be asleep." Clear: "Or ignoring her." do'Ziikin: "That's too rude for Lumo! He'd never do that!" Clear: "Unless he's being mind-controlled. It's happened to us before. I should have known it could happen again." do'Ziikin: "Ah. That explains the message." Clear: "...What message?" do'Ziikin: "Some woman sent us a message saying that her friend is mind-controlling someone onboard this ship to shoot the super-weapon." Clear: "Why... didn't you tell me that sooner?" do'Ziikin: "It only came through a moment ago! Plus I did kind of forget, to be honest." Rui-Rho, the cute robot-girl, pipes up; Rui-Rho: "Where is Green?" Clear: "She has another mission to do, Rui-Rho." ST Clan Leader: "I hate to say this, but I'm not sure we should take these two on our little... venture. Better they wait here, you know?" do'Ziikin: "No need to worry about us!" ST Clan Leader: "Kind of more worried about us getting into trouble because of you two." do'Ziikin: "Wow, your new friend is super rude." Rui-Rho: "Super friends!" Clear: "We are not super friends." ST Clan Leader: "Now who's being rude?" Clear: "Where the Hell has Ciel gotten to anyway?" Clear grumbles, rolls her eyes and marches off. The fact that everyone always wants to have some banal conversation about something stupid right before they've meant to be fighting for their lives. Being the leader of the group everyone else starts to plod after her. She makes a mental note to get some kind of anti-mind control technology for the ship. Then she thinks she should get some anti-everything technology for her ship. Time and time again it seems she and The Hopeless are in danger from some arsehole, whether it be because they want the ship or because they want her herself. As she reaches the bottom of the metal staircase one of the ST Clan lightly grabs her shoulder. Falcon Zac: "Sorry, we're going to have to go first. Our job is still to keep you safe." Clear just shrugs. She is beyond arguing for the sake of her pride. Zac's cybernetic arm grips the handle rail of the stairwell as he clambers up ahead of everyone else, practically lurching himself up by pulling on the rail. With his biological arm he carries a sub-machine gun called a Cyclone that Clear has seen in the hands of criminals and scavengers. The Cyclone allows for rapid-fire at close range and is relatively cheap compared to the more expensive assault rifles that most military organisations would use. Clear never had much use for one herself since she, when a scavenger, never took on hordes of enemies. Her good old carbine was much more suitable for picking off enemies at a greater distance, preferably before they even saw her coming. On his hip she also notices a MagSec pistol. That thing is a common weapon used by station security on Saffron 5. Though it fires 9mm bullets, the pistol charges each bullet with additional kinetic energy that allows it to better penetrate armour as well as make a very satisfying zoop, zoop noise when it shoots. That signature noise often meant it was best to put your head down and wait for the criminal element to be phased out. If you didn't, you'd be liable to end up with a hole in your own skull since the damned things are ridiculously inaccurate for a pistol. Clear often wonders if the security staff of Saffron 5 have a collateral damage quota they have to hit each time they enter a bar. Clear trots up the steps after Falcon Zac and everyone else trails after her. He passes through the airlock doors and into the ship, leaving the hangar bay behind him. As he goes she notices, for the first time, that the little cape he wears has a four-leafed clover printed on it. She resists facepalming but they she has to admit, she seems to have a great deal of bad luck so maybe having his cape around will do some good for a change. ST Clan Leader: "What are we to do with the guy when we find him?" Clear: "Is that even a question? Just knock him out! What, you think I'd agree to shooting a guy under mind control? Lumo has saved my life. He wants what's best for everybody. He's not to be hurt." There's a sudden shouting from Falcon Zac and everyone is on alert. Clear rushes the last of the steps and bursts through the airlock doors. Falcon Zac: "DOWN! DOWN ON THE GROUND!" The man looks down at the ground dubiously. Kara Pashna: "I don't see anything... what am I looking for?" Falcon Zac: "I mean get down--" Clear: "Zac. He's with me." Falcon Zac: "How do you know he's not being mind controlled too?" Kara Pashna: "Mind controlled!?" Clear: "...are you being mind controlled, Pashna?" Kara Pashna: "I doubt it! I have had a craving for ice cream the past hour though. Could be a side effect!" Clear: "See? Not mind controlled." Falcon Zac: "Wouldn't someone who is mind controlled tell you they're not mind controlled?" Clear: "As would someone who is not mind controlled..." Falcon Zac: "... the ice cream obsession c--" Clear: "He was joking." Zac slowly lowers his Cyclone SMG but narrows his eyes at the religious Indran. Falcon Zac: "I've got my eye on you, squid-guy." Kara Pashna: "You know, I'm beginning to think squid is a racist term used against me..." Clear: "They call me red-skin all the time. Just call them monkeys. That's what they're descended from." Kara Pashna: "Those furry creatures with the red bottoms?" Clear: "Exactly!" Falcon Zac: "No, not exact--" Kara Pashna: "Well then, monkey-guy, it's nice to meet you." Zac sulks and gives a groan as he stalks past Kara Pashna. Clear looks Pashna up and down with some concern as she observes his clothes. Clear: "Pashna... what are you wearing?" Kara Pashna: "Ah! I was researching Earth clothing and thought I would like to try something that they might traditionally wear there. The material is a little rough for my skin though. Maybe I should find a softer fabric and have those fabricating machines make a new one for me. What do you think?" Clear: "It's... a dress." Kara Pashna: "So that's what they call it? I quite like this material on the cuffs. I think it's called lace." The dress he's wearing a maxi dress that's blue with polka dots that would have been a common sight in 1950s U.S.A. for women. In 2017 on a male alien, however, the sight is... unsettling. Clear: "I... ah... don't have time to talk about fashion, Pashna." Kara Pashna: "Sorry! Yes! The trouble with the battle outside. Our friend Lumo seems quite excitable about it all." ST Clan Leader: "Do you know where he is?" Clear glances back as the ST Clan are coming through the airlock doors. ST Clan Leader approaches them but looks down the corridor to his left, which leads to the old Command Deck where once Ltexi and the time-pausing aliens were entrapped. He saunters rather than walks, his shoulders swaying rythmically and his face holding a comfortable status as though he owned the place. When he stopped in front of Clear and Pashna he urges the other Clan members go move past. Mabey, Ms Mezz and a man named Jor Bo. Jor Bo, unlike the others, is armed to the teeth with various guns all strapped to his body but in his hands is the FN F2000FN F2000 article, Wikipedia.'' that could probably mow down an entire crowd of people in an instant.'' Kara Pashna: "I'm not sure where Lumo is. He said you'd be unhappy with him but he had to do something. Shoot that cannon I suppose." ST Clan Leader: "Why would he say that if he's mind controlled?" Clear: "Alexis knows the mind controller. She must be trying to persuade the person to stop." ST Clan Leader: "Right. I've seen some crazy stuff in my life but I'll never get to grips with something as terrible as mind-control. I can't think of anything more criminal." Clear: "Mother?" ST Clan Leader is taken aback before he remembers who Clear is actually talking to. Mother: "Yes Clear?" Clear: "Any chance you know where Lumo is?" Mother: "Negative. He has not left the ship but I cannot detect him." Clear: "What about... power surges? That weapon is powered by several nodes, it looked like. There must be sudden surges of power somewhere on the ship?" Mother: "Yes, it would seem so. There are several points where power is spiked moments before firing the weapon. The energy for the weapon, however, is self-sustained. It does not draw on The Hopeful's usual power core." Clear: "That explains why it can fire massive energy beams but not keep the bathroom light on..." ST Clan Leader: "Some ship you have..." Clear: "It's got a lot of character." ST Clan Leader: "Mother, download the locations to our devices. Maybe we should split up, we'll find him faster if he's at one of these locations." Clear: "I don't know..." ST Clan Leader: "Seriously? He's a grey and he's old. How dangerous is he going to be?" Clear: "I'm more worried about one of you macho-gun-toting-cowboys gets trigger happy while I'm not around." ST Clan Leader: "That won't happen. You say he's to be kept safe, then that's what's going to happen. Your rules, ambassador." Mother: "Incoming..." Clear frowns. Clear: "Incoming what?" Mother: "Enemy fire." The ship suddenly starts rattling and Clear falls against the wall. After blasting two ships out of the sky, she shouldn't be surprised at a retaliation. Clear: "Can we hold up to the attack?" Mother: "Not under continuous fire." ST Clan Leader: "I hate to say it again, ambassador, but maybe we should keep this weapon active. At least for now?" Clear can't help but consider the possibility he's right. If it means her death and the destruction of The Hopeless, anything in her arsenal should be considered. She could just jump the ship back out of the system and leave the rest of the fighting to the Alliance. Pully, aboard The Unbroken, could even manage without Clear. She had wanted to stop Polly Simon from her mad quest, but more so she wanted to drag Ltexi back to The Hopeless. Even kicking and screaming, Ltexi is Clear's friend and therefore Clear's responsibility. As a little girl Clear had always imagined that Ltexi, the frozen mother, would be the one in control and the one to tell Clear to stop being lazy or to do her homework. Just like in the teen movies from Earth. Instead, now, it seems Clear must be the one to curb Ltexi's bad behaviour instead. Clear: "Okay, let's just try to get the ship out of harm's way for now. Mother, move away from the attacking ship." ST Clan Leader: "How do you know it's just one ship?" Clear: "We'd be dead otherwise. I installed new shields on her, but we've no hull plating to speak of. Pieces will start crumpling under the slightest pressure." ST Clan Leader: "You did say she has character..." Clear: "You should've seen it a while back. It is ugly now, it was hideous before I got the repairs done." Then the shuddering slows until it stops. Clear: "You got clear fast, Mother! What happened?" Mother: "They are coming." Clear: "What do you mean?" Mother: "Prepare to be boarded, captain." Clear: "Oh bollocks. There's literally nothing to stop them coming aboard!" ST Clan Leader tugs his handcannon from the straps on his leg. It's a pistol revolver but ridiculously oversized. Clear looks at it. Clear: "Compensating for something?" ST Clan: "Yes. Not having an assault rifle." Jor Bo: "No worries, boss. I got us covered there!" Jor Bo is seen returning from his walk down the corridor, his gun primed forward as though the enemy is already bearing down on him. ST Clan Leader: "You did say we're a bunch of gun-toting-cowboys, didn't you?" ST Clan Leader snaps the chamber of his pistol to the ready. ST Clan Leader: "Lucky you were right!" Clear: "Let's find a defensive position. I know how to fight the Empire but I don't know what to expect if it's the Jupiterians." She is about to ask which it is from Mother when the A.I. preempts her; Mother: "It is neither." Clear: "... then who!?" A screen flares to life. The screens are normally turned off to conserve power so she hardly even remembers they exist half the time. The screen initially shows Mother's face, as a kind of loading screen (which she suddenly thinks is lucky because a while back she had a picture of a penis as the loading screen, which would have been infinitely embarrassing, even as a joke, for these guys to all see). When it changes she sees a grey wedge ship. Jor Bo: "It is the imperials, your A.I. should drop the I..." Clear: "What is she doing here? I can't believe it..." ST Clan Leader detects the sudden anguish on Clear's face. ST Clan Leader: "Who? Who is it? You know this imperial ship?" Clear runs a hand through her white hair and holds the back of her head. Clear: "It's not an imperial ship." She presses the screen and the designation information for the ship appears. Named 'The Excellence, under the command of Sue'san Dienhand. Successor to Deonal Strang, destroyer of Mirare and sworn nemesis to Clear.'' A text message forces its way onto the communications screen; '''Message: "I am coming for you." Notes Britt's Commentary "This post features the complete line-up for the ST Clan members (as of this moment), introducing the final Character to the team; Jor Bo. I mostly wanted to add more characterisation for ST Clan Leader, particularly through his interactions with Clear, and added minor touches for the other clan members. I removed Pully and Green, long-term CatH Characters, to allow both the ST Clan characters, as well as the newer Hopeful crew, more room to be included into the narrative and have some characterisation time. I also included a couple of weapons from Perfect DarkPerfect Dark article, Wikipedia. as one such weapon was previously used around the time that ST Clan Leader was first introduced to the NeS. I intend to feature a few of these weapons around the extended universe here and there." ~ Britt the Writer References External References Category:Post Category:CatH Post